Let's Talk About… Houseguests

Ok. We all love the holidays. But how did I miss the memo that says we have to stop our normal lives from November 10 through January 3? Oh, let’s just throw Halloween in too and start with the annual October costume frenzy.

This means that for three out of 12 months you put your “normal” life on hold and begin a whirlwind of planning, cooking, and eating for all the visitors. Isn’t that a quarter of a year? Business earnings and projections decide corporate fates in less time than that. And yet, here I am, stopping everything trying to determine who is coming, who is going, should we have a party, how can I feed 12 people for ten days, who is going to put up lights, do we even need lights this year, where will people sleep and oh, what about the whole Santa thing? I have a spreadsheet. Really.

But, for now, let me focus on just one of the myriad of events pulling at my dwindling attention span: Thanksgiving. Since it just happened, it’s top of mind.

When does “Hey, I hope you guys can come for Thanksgiving” turn into 10 days of nonstop eating and bunking together like we are in a European youth hostel?

I have five siblings, many have spouses, there are my three children, two of their significant others and a host of nieces and nephews. All from out of state. (Don’t get me started on holiday travel). They all came this year. Yay!

However, this year, like every year, “Hey, I hope you guys can come for Thanksgiving” turns into a logistical nightmare the Pentagon couldn’t unravel. Yay! Not.

To review, Thanksgiving is traditionally just a Thursday night dinner, right? Sounds simple enough. So why does my first guest arrive the Saturday before and my last guest leaves the Tuesday after? Did I say “Hey, I hope you guys can come for a 2-week open house?” Uh, no. Nonetheless. How many airport trips, grocery runs and dishwasher cycles can one do while entertaining, cooking and heading out to Red Rocks and Rocky Mountain National Park?

Ok, I realize I am very lucky. I love my family. We have a ton of fun together. We eat, hike, play games, watch bad movies, play music, eat, drink and have nonstop pinochle tournaments.

But let’s get back to the main issue: Boundaries. I have a normal sized home with three bedrooms, two blow up mattresses, lots of dog hair and one kitchen. Three meals a day (who does that?) for 12 days for 10-12 people. Do the math. How many lasagnas, soups and vats of chili can you make ahead of time? Oh, and don’t even get me started on the strictly vegan, organic and gluten free contingent.

Anxiety and excitement at the beginning, relief and laundry at the end. But what a wonderful time. Did I mention how lucky I am? Thankful for sure. But you know what they say about fish and houseguests…